群体极化、二阶多样性与制度安排——读桑斯坦《极端的人群:群体行为的心理学》

Thoughts after Reading of Going to Extremes: How like Minds Unite and Divide by Cass R. Sustein

群体极化是一种持有相同倾向的人在群体讨论结束之后,更趋向保持原有观点且变得更为极端的社会现象。群体极化形成于社会隔离机制与群体的自我确信和确认。促成群体极化的社会心理学诱因源于新的信息交流,而名誉感、舌战优势、抱有偏见的辩论、退出机制、社会压力、权威结构、具体境遇、群体思维等促使群体极化的进一步发展。群体极化遍布社会政治领域,它们绝非无理性的冲动,而是在社会隔离机制的诱发下理性的自我选择与自我强化。因此,防止群体极化就不能采取简单粗暴的压制办法,而是循着群体极化得以产生的制度机理入手,通过导入群体内的一阶多样性和群体之间的二阶多样性,形成一套有效的制度安排,开放社会辩论空间和强化自由信息交换机制,形成有效的制约与平衡制度,防止群体极化向极端主义的有害化发展,而不是单纯地依循传统或体验、评估特定后果,简单粗暴地铲除群体极化。

Group Polarization, created through separation of members from the rest of society and self-belief and self-acknowledgement, is a social phenomenon. It means that after group discussions, like-minded people tend to maintain their original views and become more extreme than they were before. The very cause of social psychology that has led to group polarization lies in the exchange of new information, and other factors including sense of reputation, dominant position in debates, biased arguments, secession mechanism, social pressure, power structure, concrete circumstances and group thinking have further intensified trend of group polarization. As like-minded people can be found in both social and political spheres, they do not act rashly, rather, they act on the basis of rational self-choice and self-strengthening induced by social isolation mechanism. Taking this fact into account, prevention of group polarization cannot rely on an oversimplified and rude method. Instead, efforts should be made to establish a set of effective institutional arrangements, with the introduction of diversity of thought within a group and among groups. An open space for social debates and free exchange of information should be encouraged and supported, thus forming an effective system of check and balance.